A word in season - 2006 archive

A WORD IN SEASON
archive

Every Christian needs encouragement. On this page you will find messages written with the primary aim of doing just that. It is our hope that they will encourage you onwards in your walk with the Lord and draw you closer to Him. Unless otherwise stated, these messages are written by the Outreach for Christ team.

List of messages

Behold! I make all things new

Fear; anxiety; depression - Peace; hope; joy!

Transformed and renewed

Sin - a dirty word?

Some of the many reasons to pray

More than conquerors

Rooted and grounded in Him

Government or God: Who should you obey?

Submit: Resist: Draw near

Study God’s word: the Bible

Do not worry about anything

Your purpose in life

Deceit and a revolutionary act

Walk by faith

A quiet time

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Behold! I make all things new! PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 2010

A message from Chris Old

First the bad news

There is no point in deceiving ourselves, we have to accept what the Bible teaches about the human condition:

"...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God... " Romans chapter 3 verse 23

"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way. " Isaiah chapter 53 verse 6

"Therefore, just as through one man (Adam) sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned." Romans chapter 5 verse12

"For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death." Romans chapter 7 verse 5

"For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me." Romans chapter 7 verse 11

There is a law of sin at work in our bodies.

"And you He alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins... "
Ephesians chapter 2 verse 1

"You, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh."
Colossians chapter 2 verse 13

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked."
Jeremiah chapter 17 verse 9

We see from this small selection of passages from God’s word that the human condition is not good! The sinful human nature spread from Adam to the entire human race.

“...through one man’s offense judgement came to all men, resulting in condemnation...” Romans chapter 5 verse18

“The wages of sin is death...” Romans chapter 6 verse 23

On the basis of this overwhelming evidence any judge and jury would pronounce the verdict on the human race as GUILTY.

Now for the good news!

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans chapter 5 verse 8

I think that calls for a Hallelujah! And how did God demonstrate His own love for us?

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21

I doubt that even the most spiritually illumined among the saints of Christendom can come close to appreciating the immensity of such an act. The word ‘awesome’ is greatly overused these days. For instance a thrill ride at a theme park can be spoken of as awesome, as can trickery on the football pitch or the experience some great work of art. But none of these come close to the meaning of the word when applied to God.

John 3:16 is awesome. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,

2 Corinthians 5:21 is awesome. “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousnessof God in Him.”

2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17 is awesome. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”

Hebrews chapter 7 verse 25 is awesome. “Therefore He is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

Hebrews chapter 9 verse 12 is awesome. “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”

The whole of the first chapter of Ephesians is awesome! Read Ephesians chapter 1 verse 1 to Ephesians chapter 2 verse 1.

Once we were doomed, lost in our sins without a hope. Death and Hell were staring us in the face and there was no escape.

But then! But then! But then! God sent Jesus! Light flooded the dungeon! The prison gate was ripped from its hinges and Jesus stood on the threshold and beckoned us to join Him in His Kingdom of light and truth!

“He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.” Colossians chapter 1 verse 13

“We have been made acceptable in the Beloved...” that is Jesus because of God’s amazing grace. (see Ephesians chapter 1 verse 6)

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace...” Ephesians chapter 1 verse 7

Meditate, using the list below, on what God through Christ has done for us; has made us, outlined in the list below.

1.	We are loved with an awesome love by the Awesome God.

2. We are forgiven. Psalm chapter 103 verses 8 to 12 tells us that He has removed our transgressions and sins from us as far away as the east is from the west.

3.	In Christ we have become the righteousness of God. (see 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21)

4.	We have been made new creations. (see 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17)

5.	Old things have now passed away. (see 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17)

6.	The Holy Spirit now indwells us. (see 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verse 16)

7.	Sin no longer has dominion over us! (see Romans chapter 6 verse 14)

8.	Christ makes continual intercession for us. (see Hebrews chapter 7 verse 25)

9.	Through the Blood sacrifice of Christ we have obtained eternal redemption. (see Hebrews chapter 9 verse 12)

10.	We have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. From the kingdom ruled by the world, the flesh and the devil into the Kingdom of Christ. (see Colossians chapter 1 verse 13)

11.	We are recipients of God’s Grace through Faith – and even our faith has been given to us as a gift from God! (see Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8)

How did the Apostle Paul see himself? Well in Romans chapter 7 verse 24 he considers himself wretched in his body of death but then immediately thanks God for Jesus and makes the statement we all know, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”
Romans chapter 8 verse 1

And in 2 Corinthians chapter 2 verses 14 to 15 he writes, “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ...”

It is evident that Paul had a very balanced understanding of himself.

In 1 Timothy 1 verse 15, he calls himself the chief of sinners, whilst in Ephesians chapter 1 verse 3 he states that we have been, “blessed...with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ...”

In the light of these things how should we live? Should we see ourselves as miserable sinners or as sons of God? Should we listen to the devil when he whispers in our ear and tells us we are no good? Should we listen to his voice as he reminds us of what we once were?

When the farmer has sown his crop does he continue to plow the same ground over and over again? Read Isaiah chapter 28 verses 23 to 29. We do well to heed the advice given in these verses.

We fully understand that we were sinners. But now if any do sin we have an Advocate with the Father – none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. By all means let us have a right and sober understanding of who we once were, but let us also understand who we now are - sons of God saved by grace.

May we walk humbly with the Lord all the days of our life, but let us walk as children holding their Father’s hand and not as downcast urchins.

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Fear; anxiety; depression - Peace; hope; joy!- PUBLISHED APRIL 2008

‘John went to see his doctor, because of a concern he had about his health. Following an examination, the doctor decided to refer him to a consultant at the hospital for some exploratory tests.

As he left the surgery, John began to dwell on what might be wrong, particularly as his doctor had given him no indication. As he journeyed home he began to fear the worst. By the time John arrived at his house he was gripped by anxiety.

Johns faith in Christ was put to the back of his mind, as he opened the front door where depression was waiting to greet him.’

Fear is the soil in which the seeds of anxiety are planted to produce an invasive growth of depression that wraps its roots around life.

If the Christian succumbs in this battle, there can only be one winner and that is the devil. His desire is to bind God’s children with fear, anxiety, and depression. With fear he kills hope, with anxiety he steals peace, with depression he destroys lives. If the devil is allowed to succeed he can cause the Christian to become impotent. So what can be done for those who, like John, find themselves bound by these chains?

God warns that anxiety will lead to depression (see Proverbs chapter 12 verse 25), so don’t be surprised if your anxiety has led you down this rocky road. God knows what you are stumbling through. Yet it is often at times like these that Christian’s take their eyes of off the Lord, their destination and place them squarely on the road ahead, their situation. So the first thing to do is to switch your gaze back to Him through praise and worship and the reading of His word.

And just as God’s word warns you where your anxiety will lead, so He provides the answer to it (see Philippians chapter 4 verses 6 and 7). You are to be anxious for nothing. God knows your future and is with you in it. Cry out to Him with thankfulness and speak to Him about the concerns that lay on your heart.

God can give you peace in place of fear; joy in place of anxiety; hope in place of depression. In John chapter 16 verse 33 Jesus says, “In Me you may have peace.” In 1 Timothy chapter 1 verse 1 the apostle Paul writes, “...the Lord Jesus Christ our hope.” In Nehemiah chapter 8 verse 10 we read, “Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” It is these truths that Jesus speaks about in John chapter 8 verse 32 when He says, The truth will set you free. Christ is at the very heart of scripture which is why He can say of Himself in John chapter 14 verse 6, “I am the truth.”

God can set you free from fear, anxiety and depression. He can bring you through these testing times. His plan for your life is perfect and nothing can thwart it. Are you willing to trust Him to do what His word says?